Sierre-Inspira-Zinal

Sierre-Zinal through the lens of a spectator

Last weekend I went to Sierre Zinal. Not as a 'coureur', not as a 'touriste', but as a spectator. It was a great experience and I witnessed first hand, that track and field and trail running have much more in common than I thought. I saw extraordinary athletic performances of some of the best runners in the world. At the same time the Sierre-Zinal race gave room to the recreational runner who wants to simply challenge themselves on a merciless race course with endless climbs, technical terrain and steep downhills. To be honest with you: I was hoping to find some inspiration for myself, since I am still in some kind of grey area after Western States with no real 'next goal' in running, maybe even in life in general. Although this type of race fits me very well, inspiration didn’t come. But I am not sad or disappointed. It simply showed me once again how ‚big‘ Western States was for me and how much impact it had. I humbly embrace this aimlessness. It’s part of the overall experience that I don’t want to desecrate. I know that there is still a lot ahead of me. It just takes some time.